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The Many Fates Of Hjordis

5 years ago




Norse high fantasy with detailed custom maps, unique cultures, lore, and creatures. Journey through multiple continents filled with quests, characters, and monsters to vanquish.




Frjalsland is a harsh, but beautiful world that is both unforgiving and rewarding to the people who live there. The people there have built their own world on the bones of a failed empire that came before them and has since vanished but for superstitious whispers and rumors. Sellswords earn names for themselves slaying beasts that pray on villages and traveling merchants, neighboring regions war for land rights, and mysterious spirits roam the wilds.

Play as Hjordis as she grows from a child to an ambitious young shieldmaiden looking to earn a name for herself. Your decisions affect where she grows up, her combat style, who her companions are, and what quests she undertakes. Earn fame in Frjalsland, uncover the secrets of the Alfheim Empire, discover the hidden realm of Nidavallir built beneath the earth, and explore faraway lands across the sea thought only to exist in myth and legend.


Welcome to my motivation thread! I will be doing my best to post regular updates as well as a few snippets from the story for the next few months. This thread is to keep me accountable and on track to publishing this summer, as well as to get feedback and suggestions from anyone interested in doing so. I'll be posting the current progress update shortly.

The Many Fates Of Hjordis

5 years ago
Still excited.

The Many Fates Of Hjordis

5 years ago
Get out of here, penis-haver. This is a thread for strong independent warrior women only.

The Many Fates Of Hjordis

5 years ago
I have a clam...

The Many Fates Of Hjordis

5 years ago
I'm more excited than Clamurai.

The Many Fates Of Hjordis

5 years ago

This sounds really cool.  

The Many Fates Of Hjordis

5 years ago

Cool AND fancy!

The Many Fates Of Hjordis

5 years ago


Current Word Count: 18,562

Planned Content:
Random Events - Quests of varying difficulty - Semi customizable companion roster - Main quest line & side quests

Maps:
The maps are currently only in rough draft form and subject to change. I'm planning to purchase a cartography program to go in and remake them in greater detail in the next month or so, but here are two of the current WIP maps to look at



Progress:
Story Beginning(Complete)
Alfheim Childhood Path(Started)
Nidavallir Childhood Path(Not Complete)
Frjalsland Quests (Not Complete)
Random Events (Started)
Afheim Quests: (Not Complete)
Nidavallir Quests: (Not Complete)
Planned End Paths: 4(Still in planning, this number will most likely go up)
Variable Count:21
Companion Count: 8
In Game Compendieum: (Beastiary started, Maps started, Lore started)



Just as you are about to go to sleep in the tent, a sound echos out amongst the trees. A soft musical tune on a lone instrument that you have never heard before. Its tune is sweet and calming, chasing away the guilt and anxiety from the day. As you continue to listen, a voice begins to sing along to the music. The language is one you have never heard before and it stirs something inside of you that you have never felt before.

As if compelled by the music and the voice, you barely even realize that you are walking towards it until you are past the firelight of the camp. Once beyond the light of the fire, the moon and stars provide enough light for you to make your way. The ancient forest is still and sleeping, as if lulled by the music just as much as you are. You crawl over large roots and pick your way carefully through some of the shrubs before you find yourself in another cove.

The moonlight shines brightly through the open space, reflecting off the still water. As you step further out into the open, you catch sight of a man sitting on a rock jutting up from the water. He plays an instrument you have never seen before and sings along to the tune in that strange language. The sound is both beautiful and mournful at the same time, keeping you utterly entranced by it. Looking at him feels as you are trying to look at someone through a dense fog, despite there being no fog present. As if you were looking at something that both was and wasn’t there.

He seems to notice you at last, turning to look at you as he keeps singing. He’s handsome, even at your age you can see that about him. All strong, angular features with long pale hair and green eyes. The moonlight shimmers off of him as if he were wet, though you imagine he must be after swimming out to that rock. You can see no camp nearby either as you look around, resisting the urge to fixate on him and the music.

The music suddenly stops and you turn back to the rock, finding the man has vanished. The water about the cove seems undisturbed, only the naturally gentle lapping of the water on the shoreline betrays any movement in it. He couldn’t have possibly jumped into it without disturbing the water. Curious, you step forward and peer down into the water as it laps against your toes.

“I remember you,” A whispering voice comes from the water, startling you into stumbling back a few steps.

“Where are you?” You ask, feeling nervous now that the music is no longer calming you.

From the water you see a head slowly rise up, barely even causing a ripple on the surface. It no longer looks like a man, but something very different. The skin is pale and wet, with bits of green algae clinging to his cheeks and jaw. Weeds that grow in lake beds are caught and tangled up in his hair, as if he were but a corpse newly disentangled from lying at the bottom of the lake.

“It is… impolite to look at those who don’t wish to be seen,” Its whispered tone is chastising as it settles back into the water a bit, up to its ears now.

“I’m very sorry,” You offer the apology quickly, wondering if he was what you had seen yesterday swimming about in the water next to the boat.

“Not so sorry that you don’t come when summoned, it seems,” He murmurs, the water unmoving despite his mouth being below its surface. The whispered tone of his voice seems to come from all directions despite his presence being clearly in front of you.

“Are you a nakki then? My mother said you might be a water spirit.” You ask, curiosity getting the better of you.

“If that is what you wish to call me. Mortals have called me many things over time. But, it has been thousands of years since one could see me when I did not want to be seen. Tell me, child, how is it that you have such a gift,” He asks, floating a bit closer to the shore.

The Many Fates Of Hjordis

5 years ago

Nice, looking good and the world seems interesting (although not much to go off by yet).

Anyway, my one gripe is that you capitalize letters after dialogue when you shouldn't, namely with things like:
" 'Where are you?' You ask, feeling nervous now that the music is no longer calming you."

Notice that if you took out the dialogue the sentence wouldn't make sense, because 'you ask' what? This means the you ask (and following part) are in the same sentence as the dialogue. What do you capitalize in a sentence? The starting letter, along with proper nouns (names), and I's in reference to self (however you describe it >->).

Anyway, this means you want the 'you ask' to be lower case. Further, here:
" '... be a water spirit.' You ask,"

Refer to the earlier part where I said " 'you ask' what? ". This applies here as well, it doesn't work as a sentence, which means you want the closing dialogue punctuation to be a comma, and then the 'You ask' lowercase once more.

Worth mentioning, if the dialogue ends in a exclamation (!) or question mark (?) it doesn't get converted to a comma, but the following 'you ask' would stay lowercase to keep it all the same sentence.

Mainly remember that you want sentences to make sense, and while quotation marks can surround whole sentences, things like 'you ask/question/say/inquire/scream (etc)' all fail as sentence parts if the part which is 'said' is not mentioned there in the sentence. Generally that's how I think of it anyway.

TL;DR
Dialogue punctuation! Quotations marks show spoken dialogue, they don't automatically surround whole sentences. Dialogue ended with a comma won't cause the next word to be capitalized as a 'sentence start' capitalization, so keep it lower case if it isn't something that would normally be capitalized (like a name). This mainly applies for dialogue followed by a 'you said' or variation on it (i.e. 'you demand'), so keep an eye out for those.

P.S. Hope this makes sense, but feel free to look up dialogue punctuating yourself, note that it is not something I'd consider general writing knowledge, plenty of people don't know about it, so most people probably won't notice/care, but aiming for being correct is still a good idea I say (at least until language has officially 'evolved' to a point where something else is grammatically correct, aha).

P.P.S. I find it funny that the 'Uncharted World' is charted.

The Many Fates Of Hjordis

5 years ago
Thank you so much for pointing that out! Sadly, I was taught to capitalize after dialogue in school (I'm not even surprised to find out something was taught incorrectly there honestly lol), so it might take me awhile to break the habit, but I will do my best. I'll go back through what I have to make the changes on what I do have and make sure to keep an eye on it as I write more.

Yeah that does look funny. It's actually just a placeholder for me in the WIP maps since I haven't named it yet. That continent is newly discovered and not yet mapped in the story, one of the paths will allow you to sail to it. It is already inhabitated so a map of it becomes available once the protag sails there (Or at least shortly thereafter). The finalized maps will have that area of the world map blank as well as the areas for Muspelheim and Niflheim until the player actually goes out and finds them.

The free program I made the current maps in didn't allow me to erase land masses, I could only add names and biomes to the randomly generated ones. Once I purchase a better program, I'll be able to make maps that reflect the various states of discovered continents. The starting map will only show Frjalsland and Alfheim for example.

The Many Fates Of Hjordis

5 years ago

I can't wait to read this, I love how well fleshed out your world seems and I'm really fascinated by Norse mythology and ancient traditions in general.

Regarding this snippet in particular, I liked the description of the nekki; the phrase "as if trying to look at someone through a dense fog" is not unheard of, but it's very effective and evocative.  The tone and style themselves contribute to the Norse fantasy atmosphere with their candid natural descriptions.

Zake already mentioned the capitalization error, so the only one I can point out (aside from minor typos like "as you are trying to look at someone" instead of "as if you are trying to look at someone") is the repetition of "water" in the paragraph that starts with "The music suddenly stops." It isn't in any way a big error, I'm just nitpicking, but it can sound a bit redundant.

The Many Fates Of Hjordis

5 years ago
Thanks for pointing that out Undr! I don't like using the same word to many times in a paragraph, I'll go back through and reword it to sound less redundant. Also thanks for pointing out the typo. I probably should look around for a beta reader to help me catch stuff like that xD

The Many Fates Of Hjordis

5 years ago
I'm genuinely excited for this story, but can you add a spaceship somewhere? There really aren't nearly enough fantasy slots to go around.

The Many Fates Of Hjordis

5 years ago
Lol, I'll do my best. But I can't make any promises. I'm just not sure where I would fit one in. One of the cultures in the story are just starting to develope steam technology (steam powered trains sort of things, nothing steam punk), but that's about as technologically advanced as it gets.

The Many Fates Of Hjordis

5 years ago
Have never heard before, have never heard before, have never felt before, have never seen before ... Everything else I wished to say has already been pointed out by others, except this one small thing. It's possible it's intentional, but it seems a bit redundant to me. This seems delightful so far, I can't wait to read it!

The Many Fates Of Hjordis

5 years ago
Thanks for pointing this out, Maya! I'll see if I can't switch it up a little to make it less redundant. :)

The Many Fates Of Hjordis

5 years ago

Oh wow, you really have me hyped. Can't wait to try it!

The Many Fates Of Hjordis

5 years ago

Frjalsland > Skyrim 

The Many Fates Of Hjordis

5 years ago
"Journey through multiple continents filled with quests, characters, and monsters to vanquish."

---

Ooh, I want to go to Milfhiem!!!

Wait... adjusts glasses... oh.

The Many Fates Of Hjordis

5 years ago
LOL

To be fair, Milfheim sounds much more pleasant than Niflheim. It is freezing cold with dense fog, filled with draugr and other undead all guarding the gates to Hel which is surrounded by a fence called Nagrindr (corpse-fence).

The Many Fates Of Hjordis

5 years ago

Hey, just curious, but what programs do you use for your illustrations? I assume that is also how you got your header fonts?

The Many Fates Of Hjordis

5 years ago
For the headers, I just googled font generators. I used this one. It does provide permanent links to anything it generates which is really convenient.

The current map illustrations are generated by worldspinner, a free online map generator with some customization capabilities(But, it can be frustraiting, I had to go through and delete over 500 auto generated landmarks on the map before I could even start with my own custom ones and it will delete any maps after 30 days if you are on a free account). I'm going to buy Campaign Cartographer 3+ to remake them in better detail.

One Map To Rule Them All

5 years ago


Alright, so first and foremost I would like to say a big thank you to Undr who has been proofreading this for me. She has been going through it with a fine toothed comb and I couldn't be more thrilled. Great job, Undr! And thank you again!

Current Word Count:21,662

Progress:
Story Beginning(Complete)
Alfheim Childhood Path(Almost Done)
Nidavallir Childhood Path(Cut path, instead I'll be incorporating more quests into the region)
Frjalsland Quests (Not Complete)
Random Events (Started)
Afheim Quests: (5 Quest Outlines planned, more to come)
Nidavallir Quests: (Not Complete)
Planned End Paths: 4(Still in planning, this number will most likely go up)
Variable Count:37
Companion Count: 8
In Game Compendium: (Beastiary started, Maps-1/6 complete-, Lore started)



I'm mostly finished with one of the maps in the CC3+ program I purchased this weekend and thought I'd post it as a WIP thread update. Behold!


Alfheim
A small island nation to the south of Frjalsland inhabited by a nation of alfs called the Alfar. A highly secretive people, their existence is mainly myth and legend on the mainland. It has a lush, warm environment filled with vast forests and plains with rolling hills. It is also an ancient land with some mysterious sites and ruins scattered about just waiting to be explored. A world filled with beauty and deeply connected to the earth's natural magics, Alfheim is the starting zone for the game and will host the initial quests of the story.

Eldra Mother's Shrine
This shrine is located in the heart of the ancient forest known as Fornheimr. The centerpiece of the shrine is a massive tree that is said to be the oldest in the world. All the trees in this forest are said to originate from its seeds. Within the tree dwells a wight who guards the forest whom the Alfar have named The Eldra Mother. She is known to rescue those who get lost in the roadless forest and lead them through it and has also been known to grant wishes. It is a sacred site and many alfs make pilgrimages to the shrine once a year.

Fornheimr
This massive forest spans for many miles and is densely populated by some of the largest and oldest trees in the world. The forest is protected by law and it is illegal to cut any of the trees there, which has made it impossible to build any roads through it. As a result, only a few footpaths exist through the huge expanse of the forest.

Hunulv's Shrine
This shrine is to Hunulv, goddess of the hunt. It is maintained by the wardens of Vardrholt and also serves as a gateway to the region. Those who wish to become warg riders come to the shrine to perform ritual sacrifices to the goddess to earn her favor before entering Vardrholt to brave the wargs themselves. Her favored sacrifices are the highest quality furs and meats gained from the hunt, especially from carnivorous beasts who pose a greater threat to the hunter.

Maekeligt Sted
A site with monolithic stones surrounding another stone structure whose original purpose is unknown. The site is said to have existed before the first Alfar settled the island at the darn of the First Age. Many sorcerors, historians, and others have studied it, but it remains a mystery.

Nadhirakr
A fertile stretch of ground with trees and excellent soil with farms spread throughout it. The agricultural hub of the island, it is the source of most of the food goods in Alfheim. Hjordis' family on her paternal side owns land here and it is where she is raised in her youth.

Skogrheimr
The capital of Alfheim and the largest city on the island. It borders the largest freshwater lake on the island and is home to the royal court. It is surrounded by a vast forest and has many smaller villages in the immediate area.

Tarn Af Syn
A tower just north of the military stronghold of Vardmadrverold. It is maintained by appointed military personnel and some of the most gifted sorcerors in Alfheim. At the top of it is an unlit signal fire, a warning system built after the Jotun wars that can be seen across all of Aflheim and even on the mainland if lit. The upper levels of the tower house messenger birds that are recieved from the Veil outposts in Frjalsland while the middle and lower levels hold libraries filled with scrolls and books that are considered sensitive in nature.

Temple of Skovfar
This temple is dedicated to Skovfar, god of forests and rivers. The waters of the lake just outside the temple are prized for their healing properties. Smaller shrines to minor gods are located around the lake as well.

Temple of Skjulten
This temple belongs to the god of secrets and knowledge, Skjulten. He is the patron god of magic and within his temple are housed many ancient tombs with old knowledge guarded by the priests and priestesses there. The upper levels of the temple are used for magic rituals by the priesthood and at times sorcerors deemed worthy are also allowed to partake in these.

Vardmadrverold
A large fortress used as a military stronghold on the island, it was once the training grounds for the Alfheim army but since the war is now mostly empty but for high ranking military officials and some soldiers.

Vardrholt
A restricted region used as a breeding ground for wargs, sacred beasts to the goddess Hunulv. It is fiercely guarded by wardens who dedicate their lives to protecting the region and the shrine within it. Alfs who wish to become warg riders come here, guided by the wardens in an attempt to bond with a warg. Many of these perspective riders are killed by the wargs within the region despite the best efforts of the wardens. These sacred animals are considered more valuable than the lives of any citizen and nothing can be done to harm them for any reason. The wardens work to keep citizens out as much as to keep the wargs in. The only way into Vardrholt without being executed by the wardens is through Hunulv's shrine with a warden to supervise.

One Map To Rule Them All

5 years ago

I really really like these new graphics. The places themselves give a good idea of how the Alfar are as a culture, as you said, even with these short descriptions.

Also, warg riders! I feel the need to visit Vardrholt and be mauled by a giant wolf.

One Map To Rule Them All

5 years ago
Fear not! There's a quest for that ;)

The Many Fates Of Hjordis

5 years ago

That's actually a real cool, unique title for a story.

The Many Fates Of Hjordis

5 years ago
Thanks!

Update 3

4 years ago

I apologize for neglecting to update the WIP thread, so here's an update with a story snippet to hopefully make up for the wait. I have completed the prologue, Childhood, and 1st zone questlines for the story. I am about half way through the second zone, which is Nidavallir. I am doing a few rewrites for some of the first questlines I wrote, but the changes are minor and mostly just a matter of the tone I want to set for them. I also have a map update, though it does not have place names on it currently. However you can look at it to get an idea of the scale of the world the story is set in(This new map will show both the continent of Frjalsland and Alfheim, there are still 2 continents left to map as well as smaller islands that can be explored as well)

Current Word Count:47,873

Progress
Story Beginning(Complete)
Alfheim Childhood Path(Complete)
Alfheim Quests(Complete, but currently rewriting a couple quest lines)
Nidavallir Quests (50% complete)
Frjalsland Quests (Not Complete)
Random Events (Started)
Planned End Paths: 4(Still in planning, this number will most likely go up)
Variable Count:39
Companion Count: 9
In Game Compendium: (Beastiary started, Maps-3/6 complete-, Lore started)








Standing in the midst of Hunulv’s shrine, you feel your chest grow tight and your thoughts begin to fog. The air is dense with the incense lit about the shrine and smoke from the torches. The spiciness of the haze reminds you of the shaman’s home. Looking down at the fresh markings on your skin grounds you in the moment as you force yourself to focus on the priestess.

Hunulv’s High Priestess is a tall alf with hard muscles and a harsh face. The eldra mark that covers her body is all sharp angles. More archaic than those belonging to the common people of Alfheim. Runes sacred to Hunulv intertwine with the lines of knotwork and imagery, covered only at her hips by a skirt made of furs. A necklace of bones and teeth hangs from her neck. Her face is painted in white ash and charcoal, causing her harsh features to appear even more so. Her blue eyes are sharp, pinning you with a searing gaze that makes your heart begin to race.

“What do you offer as sacrifice to Hunulv, hunter?” Her voice is severe in tone as it rings out into the silence of the shrine.

You indicate the carcass of the great bear hoisted up above the altar. The torch light casts shadows upon its blood crusted fur. The beast looks far less intimidating now as it swings lightly on the creaking rope, tongue lolling from its gaping jaws. The priestess strides toward it, reaching out to run her fingers through the fur in what you think might be admiration. She finds the puncture wound where your spear pierced through the bear to deal the killing blow, ripping a hole into its lungs. The sound of that mighty animal wheezing its final breathes before you put it out of its misery still rattle about inside your head.

“It has been long since someone brought a bear as sacrifice. Hunulv will be pleased.” She turns away from the corpse and moves back toward you, reaching a hand out to tip your chin upward. “Remove your clothing. We will begin the sacrifice.”

Taking a deep breath, you begin removing your clothing without hesitation. The priestesses all watch with cold interest as you bare yourself before them. Once you are fully disrobed, the priestess brings you to the alter. The stone of the alter has a bowl carved into the center, directly below the hanging bear. At the lip of the carved bowl is a line cut into the stone to drain away contents into a waiting wooden bowl beneath.

A long curved knife is offered to you by a nearby priestess, the blade etched with runes. A sacrificial dagger for cutting the throat of a beast. Reaching out, you grip the fur of the bears head to pull it upward and expose the throat. It is still warm to the touch and not yet stiff with death. Drawing the blade across the bear’s throat, you watch as its lifeblood spills forth onto the altar. It spatters you when it hits the stone, but soon it is contained as it fills the altar bowl then drains down into the waiting wooden bowl below.

Chanting fills the air, a murmuring you cannot quite comprehend and yet it fills your chest with a tension that nearly chokes you. The priestess presses down upon your shoulders, leading you to kneel at the altar as the blood flows before you. Rhythmic drums beat somewhere behind you, sharpening your mind as the chanting continues. The stone beneath you is cold against your bare skin as you stare in fixation upon the altar and its contents.

The priestess lifts the wooden bowl now filled to brimming as another replaces it with an empty one. She holds the bowl out to you and the scent of the blood fills your nose, clearing your mind of the fogginess brought on by the incense in the air. Leaning forward, you steady the bowl with your hand and puts your lips to it. The thick warm liquid fills your mouth as you drink deeply of it. The need to gag threatens to cause you to spill it, but you force yourself to keep drinking until the bowl is empty.

The priestess presses her finger against your wet lips, smearing the blood around your mouth before stepping back. Reaching out to the bear, the priestess allows some of the blood to run onto her fingers before flicking them at you. Blood spatter sprinkles onto your face and chest. She leans down, bringing her blood soaked hand before your face. After hovering there for a moment, her hand caresses your face as one of her fingers slides past your lips. Unsure what else to do, you lick the blood from the priestess’ fingers.

When the bear is completely drained, the priestess take the wooden bowls and pour them over your head and onto your arms, chest, back, and legs. Covering your skin in the warm coagulating liquid. The priestess pulls you up to your feet, a smile upon her blood smeared mouth.

“The sacrifice has been offered. Now you will go into the forest alone. Offer your devotion to Hunulv and if you are worthy, then the wargs will not harm you. If you are found unworthy, they will devour you,” she says with a softer voice than before as she hands you a lantern.

Refusing to look back, you walk toward the back of the shrine as she directs you out into the forest. The failing sunlight casts long shadows in the dense forest of Vardrholt. Stopping once you hear the drums of the shrine sound distant, you find yourself in a small clearing. The sun is shining its last rays, nearly gone as the darkness threatens to swallow you whole. Movement in the shadows tells you that you are not alone.

Yellow eyes reflect the light of your lantern as you hold it aloft before you. The trees creak as a warg steps out from the trees. Larger than any bear and taller than a horse, the sacred beast stalks into the clearing. Its fur gleams amber brown in the flickering light and its lips curl back in a snarl that nearly rattles your bones with the sound. Its teeth are as long as your fingers and they snap together like thunder when the warg clamps its jaws shut as it crouches low, stalking ever closer as you stand your ground.

Update 3

4 years ago

Oooh, what are those little nameless islands?

Update 3

4 years ago
There's one that is currently called The Isle of Wights(That's the island between Alfheim and Frjalsland), but I'm probably going to rename it. It's pretty much super haunted. Then there's Muspelheim, which is an island filled with fire giants and dragons. And an unnamed set of islands that are shrouded in fog and filled with draugr that guard the hidden gates to Hel. There's a few islands off the coast of Jotunheim that I'm still toying with ideas for too.

The Many Fates Of Hjordis

4 years ago

WoW! This looks amazing!

The Many Fates Of Hjordis

4 years ago
Sabley responded with: "Aw bless em. I’m still working on it here and there when I have time. I won’t be able to do much til the house is done. I am working on something less intensive that is easier to write in short spurts of time though" She just didn't feel like logging into the forum. Now she didn't say it was because you were too new and unimportant, but I sensed her meaning.

The Many Fates Of Hjordis

4 years ago
Now I feel bad!

Anyway, thank you new person. This project is semi on hold for me. I'm in the last month of building a house and it has consumed my free time. I am still working on it when I can, but until the house is done I can't sit down long enough to do anything with it.

Good news is I should be move in ready by the end of the month or first week of November. Might take me a bit to get all settled, but once I do TMFOH will be back in my top priority spot!